used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading A TENSE SITUATION It was mysterious, haunting, spectral.
touching and pressing; in opposition to
From this reading The shadows of these, cast by the flickering light of the candle, appeared to take on life as they leaped, swaying and dancing, against the dusky walls.
Belonging to the very distant past and no longer in existence or deeply revered.
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
past form of “appear” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading The shadows of these, cast by the flickering light of the candle, appeared to take on life as they leaped, swaying and dancing, against the dusky walls.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
being of the achromatic color of maximum darkness; having little or no hue owing to absorption of almost all incident light
From this reading Black walls of coal were on either side.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading The shadows of these, cast by the flickering light of the candle, appeared to take on life as they leaped, swaying and dancing, against the dusky walls.
stick of wax with a wick in the middle
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
taking care or paying attention
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
put or send forth
From this reading The shadows of these, cast by the flickering light of the candle, appeared to take on life as they leaped, swaying and dancing, against the dusky walls.
coalnounUS /koʊl/
fossil fuel consisting of carbonized vegetable matter deposited in the Carboniferous period
From this reading Black walls of coal were on either side.
taking a series of rhythmical steps (and movements) in time to music
From this reading The shadows of these, cast by the flickering light of the candle, appeared to take on life as they leaped, swaying and dancing, against the dusky walls.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
duskyadjective
lighted by or as if by twilight
From this reading The shadows of these, cast by the flickering light of the candle, appeared to take on life as they leaped, swaying and dancing, against the dusky walls.
EgyptiannounUS /ɪˈdʒɪpʃən/
a native or inhabitant of Egypt
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
one or the other of two
From this reading Black walls of coal were on either side.
everydeterminerUS /ˈevəri/
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
flickeringadjectiveUS /ˈflɪkərɪŋ/
shining unsteadily
From this reading The shadows of these, cast by the flickering light of the candle, appeared to take on life as they leaped, swaying and dancing, against the dusky walls.
FlorencenounUS /ˈflɔːrəns/
a city in central Italy on the Arno; provincial capital of Tuscany; center of the Italian Renaissance from 14th to 16th centuries
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
the act of departing
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
not to be placated or appeased or moved by entreaty
From this reading Before these the mine props stood like grim sentinels.
hauntingadjectiveUS /ˈhɔːntɪŋ/
continually recurring to the mind
From this reading A TENSE SITUATION It was mysterious, haunting, spectral.
occupied or in the control of; often used in combination
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/
moving to the inside of something
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading A TENSE SITUATION It was mysterious, haunting, spectral.
a male sovereign; ruler of a kingdom
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
past form of “leap” — move forward by leaps and bounds
From this reading The shadows of these, cast by the flickering light of the candle, appeared to take on life as they leaped, swaying and dancing, against the dusky walls.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading The shadows of these, cast by the flickering light of the candle, appeared to take on life as they leaped, swaying and dancing, against the dusky walls.
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading The shadows of these, cast by the flickering light of the candle, appeared to take on life as they leaped, swaying and dancing, against the dusky walls.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
the one or ones belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Before these the mine props stood like grim sentinels.
of an obscure nature
From this reading A TENSE SITUATION It was mysterious, haunting, spectral.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Black walls of coal were on either side.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
poisedadjectiveUS /pɔɪzd/
marked by balance or equilibrium and readiness for action
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
propsnounUS /prɑːps/
proper respect
From this reading Before these the mine props stood like grim sentinels.
sentinelsnounUS /ˈsentənəlz/
plural of “sentinel” — a person employed to keep watch for some anticipated event
From this reading Before these the mine props stood like grim sentinels.
plural of “shadow” — shade within clear boundaries
From this reading The shadows of these, cast by the flickering light of the candle, appeared to take on life as they leaped, swaying and dancing, against the dusky walls.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading Black walls of coal were on either side.
the general state of things; the combination of circumstances at a given time
From this reading A TENSE SITUATION It was mysterious, haunting, spectral.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
spectraladjectiveUS /ˈspektrəl/
of or relating to a spectrum
From this reading A TENSE SITUATION It was mysterious, haunting, spectral.
stairwaynounUS /ˈsterweɪ/
a way of access (upward and downward) consisting of a set of steps
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
any maneuver made as part of progress toward a goal
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
a lump or mass of hard consolidated mineral matter
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading Before these the mine props stood like grim sentinels.
swayingverbUS /ˈsweɪɪŋ/
-ing form of “sway” — move back and forth or sideways
From this reading The shadows of these, cast by the flickering light of the candle, appeared to take on life as they leaped, swaying and dancing, against the dusky walls.
carry out
From this reading The shadows of these, cast by the flickering light of the candle, appeared to take on life as they leaped, swaying and dancing, against the dusky walls.
TENSEnounUS /tens/
a grammatical category of verbs used to express distinctions of time
From this reading A TENSE SITUATION It was mysterious, haunting, spectral.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading Before these the mine props stood like grim sentinels.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The shadows of these, cast by the flickering light of the candle, appeared to take on life as they leaped, swaying and dancing, against the dusky walls.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The shadows of these, cast by the flickering light of the candle, appeared to take on life as they leaped, swaying and dancing, against the dusky walls.
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
tombnounUS /tuːm/
a place for the burial of a corpse (especially beneath the ground and marked by a tombstone)
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
plural of “wall” — an architectural partition with a height and length greater than its thickness; used to divide or enclose an area or to support another structure
From this reading Black walls of coal were on either side.
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading A TENSE SITUATION It was mysterious, haunting, spectral.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Black walls of coal were on either side.
in the company of; together with
From this reading “Like going down into the tomb of some ancient Egyptian king,” Florence told herself as, with candle held well out before her, and every step carefully poised, she made her way down the long stone stairway.
